Cell Phone Use While Driving Can Be Costly

Though the use of a cell phone to call or text is perfectly legal in the
state of Florida, many drivers are finding that this practice does not
come without consequences. According to the Sarasota
Herald-Tribune, when drivers are involved in
accidents law enforcement officers are increasingly searching the phone
records of the drivers to see if phone use could have been a factor in
the crash. Instead of receiving a traffic ticket for causing an accident
that results in a death, drivers found to have been using their phones
at the time of the accident can often be charged with vehicular homicide
instead. In addition to facing jail time for criminal offenses like
vehicular homicide, cell phone use that causes accidents can be used
against a driver in a civil trial as well.

Bills to ban the use of cell phones and texting while driving have
repeatedly failed in the Florida state legislature. Many have claimed
that these repeated failures have been due to a push by big telecom
companies to fight limits to texting, which is extremely profitable.
Despite this, the dangers have pushed the Florida Highway Patrol to
order its troopers to stop using handheld cell phones while driving,
unless they are using a hands-free device. Along the same vein, the city
of Parkland in Broward County progressively enacted its own city-wide
ban on text messaging while driving in 2009. There is legislation to ban
wireless device usage seemingly always on the table in the Florida
legislature, so there is hope that it will soon be passed.

According to the University of Utah, cell phone use while driving
presents a distraction that extends a driver’s reaction time as much as
having a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) at around .08%, which is at
the legal limit for drivers over 21. According to Virginia Tech, the
number one source of driver inattention is use of a wireless device.

Additionally, driving while
distracted is a factor
in 25 percent of reported accidents. Earlier this year, State Farm
Insurance announced research results that showed that around 19% of
drivers surveyed accessed the Internet on a smart phone while driving.

Though cell phone use while driving is still legal in the state of
Florida, it presents a seriously inflated risk to the individual and
other drivers on the road. If you need to use a wireless device while
driving, follow the guidelines provided by the Florida Highway Patrol.
If you or a loved one has been involved in an automobile accident,
especially one where the other driver could have been using a cell phone
or was otherwise negligent, you may be entitled to compensation.